Roman Religion

CHW3M

What happens when you die?

The soul is immortalWhen you die, your soul is escorted to the river Styx by MercuryRomans buried their dead with a coin in their mouthsYou use this coin to pay Charon the ferryman for passage over the river Styx

What happens when you die?

On the other side of the Styx, you pass Cerberus, the three-headed watchdog

Cerberus will pay you no mind going in, but if a soul tries to leave the underworld without permission, he’ll be mean as hell

What happens when you die?

You then go before the three judges, Minos, Rhadamanthos and AeacusIf you’re a warrior or hero, they’ll send you to the Elysian Fields (paradise)If you’re an average good citizen, you’ll go to the Plain of Asphodel (similar to normal life)If you’ve been bad, they’ll send you to Tartarus (the Furies will punish you until your debt to society/the gods is paid)

No “eternal damnation”

What happens when you die?

Sometimes – for example if you’ve been unjustly murdered - you could be granted passage back out of the underworld to be reborn againYou’ll have to drink from the river of forgetfulness so you won’t remember anything

Similarities/Differences?

Egyptian afterlife?Mesopotamian afterlife?

Activity

Draw a picture showing what the Romans believe happens when you dieYou may want to include any of the following

MercuryThe River StyxCharonCerberusThe three judgesThe FuriesElysian Fields, Plain of Asphodel, Tartarus

The Roman Pantheon

As discussed yesterday, based on the Greek pantheonBut also on Etruscan and Latin godsIn fact, the Romans incorporated the gods of everyone they conquered, which made things very complicated by the late Empire, which made the switch to Christianity kind of a relief

Other minor deities

Spirits of trees, water, fire, stonesSpirits to watch over everyday eventsSpirits of ancestorsSpirits of parts of the house

Practices

Lots of ritualsSacrificesDivinations

Monthly festivalsEx: Festival of Saturnalia

Held in December in honour of SaturnInvolved exchanging giftsSound familiar?

The Priesthood

Elected officialsHigh priest is Pontifex Maximus

Sound familiar?

Christianity

Based on Judaism, emerged around 30 CE

Fairly unique in that it was monotheisticZoroastrianism (founded in Persia around 600 BCE) also monotheistic and highly influential on Judaism

Christianity

Jesus was born and preached in Palestine (a Roman province)Ran afoul of the Jewish and Roman authoritiesWas crucified around 33-36 CE

Christianity

Jesus’s followers continued to follow his teachings and spread Christianity

2 of his original apostles, Paul and Peter, were executed in Rome by Nero

Initially, however, Christianity is not seen as a threat, just a minor, underground religion

A growing threat?

Highly organized church system with well documented sacred writingsChristianity’s promises of equality, forgiveness, eternal happiness look pretty attractive compared to Roman religion

Persecution

Christians are Roman citizens, bound to Roman law, yet refuse to worship the EmperorIt became popular to blame Christians for natural disastersChristian rituals offensive (endorsing cannibalism?)

The tables turn

Despite widespread persecution and executions, Christianity growsBy 300 CE about 10% of the Roman empire is ChristianSoon after, Constantine converts to ChristianityIn 380 CE Theodosius makes Christianity the official religion of the Empire

A Roman Perspective

See “Through Their Eyes” on page 182

Role Play

Write a letter as either…A Roman who has recently converted to Christianity, outlining the reasons for your conversionA Roman who is concerned about the spread of Christianity, outlining what you are worried about and what the authorities are doing about it